Week 17 Arizona Cardinals advanced stats

The Arizona Cardinals season is over. They will sit at home and watch the 12 teams battle for a Super Bowl spot. A season of falling short of all the hype, falling short of their own goals, came to an end with a 44-6 victory. It was one of their most successful games of 2016, and had the look of a team that everyone expected going into the season. There were moments they reached their potential, but those moments were few and far between.

Pro Football Focus put together one last look at the Cardinals, and the numbers were good.

• The official stat sheet will show Carson Palmer completing 20 of his 38 pass attempts. PFF shows he completed 20 of his 30 “aimed” passes as he threw two away, five passes he was hit while throwing, one was dropped, and another was batted down.
• Larry Fitzgerald saw six targets in the game, catching five, and scoring a touchdown. Palmer’s QB rating was 136.1 when targeting Fitzgerald.
• JJ Nelson was targeted nine times, leading the team. He hauled in four catches, and picked up 22 yards after the catch. Palmers growing trust with Nelson has him poised for a big 2017.
• A.Q. Shipley lead the team with an 80.1 run blocking grade. He allowed only one hit in 45 pass blocking snaps. Shipley has looked good in recent weeks, and looks like he will be tough to beat for the center role in 2017.
• D.J. Swearinger had a team high 93.8 grade overall. He rushed the passer five times, generating one sack, one hit, and two hurries. Swearinger only allowed two catches for three yards. He’s played lights out lately, as he tries to earn a larger contract in 2017.
• Bethel had one of his best games as a corner. He allowed three catches on four targets, for 13 yards. He also recorded an interception and held Rams QB’s to a rating of 38.5 when throwing his way.
• Calais Campbell had two sacks and a hurry on 21 pass rush snaps. Campbell recorded nine sacks, 15 hits, 32 hurries, and five batted passes on the season.
• Chandler Jones had two sacks, and a hurry on 21 pass rush snaps. Jones ended the season with 12 sacks, 10 hits, 44 hurries and two batted passes.
• Markus Golden also had a two sack game. He recorded three hurries on his 24 pass rush snaps. Golden ended his season with 13 sacks, 11 hits, and 31 hurries.

An impressive ending to a unimpressive season. The Cardinals now have a few months to rest and put together the roster for 2017.

Want to keep up with your Cardinals news off the site? Follow ROTB on Twitter at @revengeofbirds and hit our like button on Facebook. Follow me personally at @Mannrotb